As expected, it wouldn’t be long before Stern Pinball would unveil what the upcoming X-MEN Pinball machine would look like, so here they are. As with previous Stern units, they have a Pro model which is intended primarily for arcades. Limited Editions exist as Wolverine and Magneto. Pictures are as Stern shared from their Facebook page. I had heard that this would possibly have an LCD screen but that doesn’t appear to be the case here. It does have a red dot matrix display, like 24 Pinball did. There appears to be a spinning disc on the playfield, nice artwork too which I’m glad to see is based on the cartoons and not the movies. I received a press release which I posted below but why they are still using that “World’s only maker of arcade quality pinball machines” line I am not sure, since this game is going head-to-head with their first arcade-quality competitor in ages. I’m quite excited to see how this competition will make both companies pull off their best ideas.
Wolverine LE Model
Magneto LE
There are two playfield pictures with a moving ramp for the LE model
And a press release for it:
Stern Pinball Launches Much Anticipated X-Men Pinball Machine
Worlds Only Maker of Arcade Quality Pinball Announces Newest Addition to Comic Inspired Collection of Machines
MELROSE PARK, IL June 7, 2012 Stern Pinball, Inc., the worlds only maker of real pinball games, announced today the availability of the X-Men pinball machine based on the Marvel comic book series.The newest addition to the Stern collection celebrates X-Men, one of the most popular comic book series to date. X-Men will join Sterns revolutionary line-up of comic inspired machines including Spiderman, Iron Man and Batman.
Since the first appearance of X-Men in 1963, the characters in the Stan Lee series have resonated with millions of comic lovers. Now X-Men fans can experience the adventure first hand with a first of its kind pinball display. In this game, players can help gather their favorite X-Men to battle and defeat their villainous enemies. The game features seven main villains including Juggernaut, The Brotherhood of Mutants, The Hellfire Club, Shadow King, Sabertooth, Sentinels and Omega Red. The machine also features a Blackbird launcher and special game modes that touch on the most exciting events in the X-Men Universe.
Stan Lees compelling storytelling combined with his dynamic cast of X-Men have captured the hearts and imaginations of fans of all ages for almost 40 years, said Gary Stern, founder, CEO and chairman of Stern Pinball. The X-Men pinball machine celebrates Stans much loved series and brings fans a whole new adventure right at their fingertips.
The X-Men game continues both the Stern Pinball and the Stern family tradition of producing quality pinball machines for young and old. The company traces its lineage to Philadelphia in the 1930s when Sam Stern entered the business of operating pinball games. Stern passed his lifelong enthusiasm for the game and the business of pinball to his son Gary Stern who founded Stern Pinball. Today pinball remains one of Americas favorite pastimes.
Pricing and Availability: LE Model $7999 MSRP
Pro Model $5699 MSRP
To learn more about the X-Men pinball machine and Stern Pinball, visit www.sternpinball.com.
About Stern Pinball
Stern Pinball, Inc., located just outside Chicago, Illinois, designs and manufactures arcade-quality pinball games. Stern is the only maker of full-sized, arcade quality pinball games on the planet and has released many popular games, including Tron, AC/DC, Transformers, Avatar, The Rolling Stones, Iron Man and many more. Sterns games continue to be enjoyed by both pinball enthusiasts and casual players around the globe. For more information visit www.sternpinball.com.
After seeing the incredible WOZ pinball yesterday, this Xmen pinball is anticlimactic and to be honest, kinda cheap looking. The side artwork and the backglass look good, but the playfield suffers from “Photoshop Syndrome.” They should have hired an “Old School” X-Men artist to do the artwork for the playfield. Guess they had to pay through the nose for the license.
Unfortunately I have to agree. The Pro and Magneto LE side art looks awesome, the Wolverine LE less so. But the playfield looks a little uninspired. The Magneto toy looks cool and a given as the magnet gadget is a no-brainer (I’m assuming it is a magnetic spinning disc like on Borg’s Twister) and Magneto was such a primary foe of theirs for so long. But the big Wolverine toy looks cheap to me. The giant Magneto seems OK since he is located farther back at the upper middle part of the playfield but that giant Wolvie Sentinel just looks out of place smack dab in the middle like that. But hey it’s hard to say anything from a static early pic – I’m still hoping to love it when I see the video of it being played, but so far the Wiz looks cooler.
I also agree this does not excite me just the same stuff. WOZ theme is not for me but the machine excites me it’s different with new stuff. I’m now excited about the future of pinball if competition can continue. Awaiting both companies next few machines
The artwork looks awesome. Very catchy, should draw attention in the arcade. The game looks terrible, especially after seeing WOZ a couple days ago.
Hopefully JJP pushes Stern to improve or I see them making $350 Price Club specials in the near future
Funny thing is that just the original announcement of WOZ changed how Stern was doing things. Remember how everything they were making was getting worse and less inspired (NBA Pinball just ripping off the same design as a 90s pin or AVATAR’s terribly boring design that led to operators looking to dump that game as fast as they got it) but WOZ comes along saying they were going to change things and suddenly Stern starts making LE models and making designs better than where they had been going while also improving their marketing. once WOZ starts to sell I imagine that then is when we will really see the competitive effect kick in
I love the classic X-Men comic book artwork but I also agree that the playfield just looks okay. Hopefully this won’t disappoint. I was also really surprised by the WOZ, thinking it was a horrible theme from the get-go but now I’m hoping that someone I know gets one of these.